earticle

영어

This paper aims at analyzing the ironical relation of the black fatherhood and the imaginary self working through the repression and the dominance embedded in the unfair structure of black patriarchy in Toni Morrison’s Love. Emotionally detached by fathers, May, Heed, Christine, and Junior give themselves over to the patriarchy, the man who looms even larger in their imaginary self than in their real lives. To overcome the trauma of their parental abandonment and betrayal, they seek the physical and psychic solace, and the protection in Bill Cosy. However, the fantasy experiencing from Cosy’s hotel and resort magnify the desire for support from the larger symbolic structures to prevent anxiety and fear. Even though May, Heed, Christine, and Junior see Cosy through idealizing eyes, his patriarchy mimics the hierarchy and the exclusive structure of the white dominant culture. The imaginary self on Cosy’s patriarchy can trigger the vicious circle of repression and discrimination. Accordingly, parental affection, family nurturing, and community solidarity can contribute for black women to recover their earlier friendship and love by perceiving the reality of Cosy’s patriarchy.